Beaded platform welting



J1me 1955 w. c. VIZARD BEADED PLATFORM WELTING 2 Sheefs-Sheet 1 Filed April 2, 1953 INVENTOR.

29 M/Aam V/zdrc/ VWQMW ATTOR/Vf June 7, 1955 w. c. VIZARD 0 BEADED PLATFORM WELTING Filed April 2, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

m/A-a m a 14-20 B 1, amm- HTTOFF/VEY United States Patent 11 BEADED PLATFORM WELTING William C. Vizard, Brockton, Mass., assignor to Barbour Welting Company, Brockton,.Mass.

Application April 2, 1953, Serial No. 346,502

3 Claims. (Cl. 36-78) This invention relates to a novel shoe welting and more particularly to a shoe welting of a beaded platform type.

In general the primary object of the invention is to provide a novel and attractive shoe welting, and particularly a shoe welting embodying a relatively high upstanding platform flange and a lower beaded portion cooperating therewith, as will be described, and disposed between the hi h platform flange and the welt edge.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel and highly decorative welt, preferably of the platform type, wherein the welting is provided with a platform flange of a height, as will be described, substantially higher than the relatively low ribs which have heretofore characterized the commercial forms of welting marketed under the name, Storm Welt, to thereby provide a relatively high flange having a relatively large surface area, and provision is preferably made for decorating the exposed surface of the platform flange in accordance with the particular type of shoe for which the welting is designed.

A further object of the invention is to provide a novel structure of welting provided with a relatively high platform flange with which one or more beads are arranged to cooperate to impart a beaded appearance to the welting and at the same time to stiffen the base portion of the flange and to reinforce the same to the end that the flange may be caused to closely fit the contour of the upper and to remain in such closely fitting relation during the life of the shoe.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a fillet of grain leather, showing the removal of a marginal flesh strip therefrom;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the marginal grain lip folded onto the flesh shoulder of the fillet;

Fig. 3 is a similar view indicating the cuts made in the body of the fillet, to produce foldable grain and flesh flaps;

Fig. 4 is a similar view showing a step in the method of folding the flaps of the fillet to form the Welt;;

Fig. 5 is a similar view showing the finished welting;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of the forepart of a Goodyear welt shoe embodying the improved welt; and

Figs. 7 through are perspective views illustrating different embodiments of the invention.

With these general objects in view and such others as may hereinafter appear, the invention consists in the construction of welting hereinafter described and particular- 1y defined in the claims at the end of this specification.

In general, in the broader aspects of the invention, the present novel and improved welting contemplates a structure wherein any. usual or preferred form of welt edge is provided along its inner marginwith a relatively high platform flange upstanding from the top surface of the welt edge. In practice this platform flange may be of a height of from A to /2" above the surface of the welt edge. In accordance with the invention, the welting is also provided with one or more bead members disposed adjacent the outer face of the platform flange and secured to the welt 2,709,858 Patented June 7, I955 edge in such position as to reinforce and stiffen the lower portion of the elevated platform flange and at the same time to leave an exposed face of the platform flange of substantial area above the top of the bead or beads. The height of the beads may vary from /s to above the surface of the welt edge, and preferably, the beads and flange are proportioned so as to leave an exposed face of the platform flange of at least A3, and which in some instances may be increased to about A.

For many purposes superior styling effects may be obtained by contrasting colors between the exposed surface of the platform flange above the head with relation to the color of bead and also with relation to the color of the exposed surface of the welt edge. In other instances I may prefer to decorate the exposed surface of the platform flange and/or the bead itself as Well as the exposed surface of the welt edge, as by provision of cuts and/or notches in said portions of various shapes and designs or in other particulars.

I may produce the entire structure of one piece of leather by novel cutting and folding operations, as Will be described. In other aspects of the invention the beaded portion and/or the platform flange portion may be separately formed, or they may be formed together as a unit and then assembled and secured to the body of the Welt by cementing, stitching or otherwise. In some instances I may prefer to form a platform flange and beaded portion separately and may prefer to sew them into the shoe together with the welting to form the improved beaded platform welt in the course of the manufacture of the shoe. The bead may take various forms, either a single or multiple bead, and both the platform and bead may be constructed of various materials, including real leather, synthetic leather or any of the known or preferred forms of synthetic plastic. In other aspects of the invention the entire beaded platform welt may be extruded into its finished shape utilizing any of the synthetic resinous plastic materials which have or may be utilized at the present time in the commercial forms of extruded plastic welting now upon the market.

In accordance with Figs. 1 to 5, the beaded platform welting may be made from a grain leather fillet 11. A marginal flesh strip 12 is first cut from one longitudinal edge of the fillet, leaving a thin grain lip 13 and an inclined flesh shoulder 14, as shown in Fig. l. The grain lip is then folded downwardly onto the flesh shoulder, and cemented thereto, as shown in Fig. 2, to provide a laminated flange 15 which constitutes the grain-covered, upper edge portion of the upstanding platform flange of the finished welt as hereinafter explained. The removed strip or strand 12 may be employed as a filler, or otherwise, in making stitchdown or other types of Welting.

The body of the fillet is next sliced by a suitable knife or cutter, to form the aligned slits 16 and 17, parallel to the top of the fillet, and the intermediate curved cuts 18 and 19 which meet at the bottom of the fillet to divide its flesh base longitudinally as shown in Fig. 3. These cuts provide a grain flap or cover 20, intermediate the margins of the fillet, and a rounded rib or core 21 under the central part of that cover; a solid leather margin 22 which becomes the welt extension; the flesh flap 23 as a projection of the extension 22; and a flesh flap 24 as a projection of the platform flange 15 (Fig. 4).

A flesh string 25 is removed from the flap 24 (Fig. 3) to leave a longitudinal groove 26 forming a bend line for said flap (Figs. 4 and 5); and an inseam groove 27 is cut in the base of the flap 2.3 at any desired stage of the process.

As indicated in Figs. 4 and 5, the partially divided fillet is folded upon itself and the adjoined surfaces are cemented together, to form the finished welt which is then pressed or molded to final shape for incorporation in a shoe by conventional Goodyear welting methods. As

a first step, the grain cover may be bent upwardly, substantially at right angles to the extension 22; and the flesh flap 24 bent outwardly, substantially at right angles to the cover flap 20 (Fig. 4). The cover is then folded upon itself over the core 21 to form the bead 28; and the flesh flaps 23 and 24 are juxtaposed to form a laminated, relativelly thick, inseam flange 2.9 (Fig. 5). The folded parts are bonded by cement and the welt is molded to form, as aforesaid.

When the beaded platform welt is conventionally sewed to the vamp 30 and its lining, and to the flanges of the insole 31 by the inseam stitch 32, the platform flange 15 is drawn tightly against the vamp, and held thereagainst during wear of the shoe by the supporting bead 28. It will be noted that the molding of the welt concaves the inner side of the platform and the depending inseam flange, which readily flexes along the groove 26 so that the top of the platform presses closely against the vamp, and will not spread outwardly during flexure of the shoe in walking.

The shoe may be finished by applying and outseaming the outsole 33 after filling the bottom cavity in accordance with common practice.

In Fig. 7 I have illustrated a modified form of beaded platform welt embodying the invention, wherein a flat welt 35 has cemented or otherwise secured to the upper surface thereof, and in the position illustrated, a bead and platform flange unit 38.' The unit 38 comprises a preformed core member 39 which may be of any seetional shape herein shown as comprising a rod of paper, leather or other similar flexible material and around which a grain surface lip 34 cut from a leather fillet of the type shown in Fig. 2 is folded. The unit 38 is cut so as to form the upstanding platform flange 36 which projects substantially above the bead and is of a twoply structure as shown. The unit 38 is also provided with an inseam lip 37, and in practice the entire unit 38 may be cemented to the contacting surfaces of the welt 35, or if desired the unit 38 and welt may be secured together by the usual inseam stitches when the welt is sewn into the shoe.

In Fig. 8 I have illustrated another embodiment of the invention wherein the bead and platform unit 41 may be formed by folding a thin grain-surface leather piece 42 about a preformed core member 61 shaped to provide a bead-forming portion 43 and substantially higher platform flange 44. The leather piece also preferably forms an inseam lip 45, and both the covered platform and beadforming portions of the core together with the inseam lip may be cemented to the flat welt 47, in the position illustrated, or if desired the component parts of the structure may be secured together when the platform and beaded welt are sewn into the shoe.

In Fig. 9 I have illustrated another embodiment of the invention wherein the bead-forming portion 48 and platform-forming portion 49 of a preformed bead and platform flange unit 51 may be formed of a single piece of leather notched and folded so that the bead and platform extend at right angles to one another and may be cemented together at their contacting surfaces. The bead and platform flange unit may be cemented or otherwise secured to the flat welt 53, and as herein shown are secured together to form a unit by a line of decorative stitching extending longitudinally along the bead-forming portion 48 and through the flat welt. The completed platform and beaded welt may then be sewn into the shoe in the usual manner, the stitches extending through the inseam lip formed by the projecting inner margin of the flat welt.

Fig. 10 illustrates a structure similar to Fig. 9 with the exception that the bead and platform flange unit may also be provided with an inseam lip-forming portion 56,

Figs. 11 and 12 illustrate still another modification of the invention, wherein the platform flange is formed by cutting and folding a leather fillet into the shape shown in Figs. 11 and 12, the component plies of the platform flange being preferably cemented together, and the inner ply being folded to form an inseam lip. The bead-forming portion may be formed of any desired shape and sewn or otherwise secured to the rest of the unit either by stitching, as shown in Fig. 11, extending through the bead and through the welt, or by horizontally arranged stitching, as shown in Fig. 12, extending through the bead and through the platform.

In Fig. 13 I have illustrated still another embodiment of the invention wherein both the platform-forming flange 60 and the bead-forming member 62 may be formed of a single piece of leather formed as a part of the welt body 64 itself by suitable cutting and folding operations, as will be apparent from an inspection of Fig. 13. The bead-forming portion may be stitched by a double row of stitches 66 in the manner illustrated to secure the parts together, and the lip-forming portions 68 of the finished welt are secured together when the welt is secured to the shoe.

Fig. l4'illustrates a view similar to Fig. 13 with the platform components secured together by a line of stitching 70 extending through and transversely of the platform flange. In Fig. 14 I have also illustrated one form of decoration which may be applied to or formed in the bead-forming portion, as by cutting diamond-shaped notches 72 in the bead-forming portion as shown.

In Fig. 15 the structure is similar to that shown in Fig. 14 with the exception that both the upper surface of the bead and platform-forming portions 62, 60 may be provided with cutout portions 74, 76 forming an attractive decoration when the completed welt is sewn into the shoe.

The relative heights of the bead and platform flanges of the various welts illustrated in Figs. 7 through 15 are, as has been previously described, in connection with the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Fig. 5 as above described, and as above stated may be provided with various types of decorations upon the surface of one or both thereof to enhance the styling of the particular type of shoe with which the welt is designed to be used.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed 1. Shoe welting having an extension at its outer margin and a substantially vertical platform flange and an inseam flange at its inner margin, a bead at the juncture of the extension and platform flange, the bead lying above said extension and the platform flange projecting a substantial distance above the bead, said inseam flange extending downwardly and inwardly from the base of said platform flange, the upper portion of said platform flange, on the side thereof'opposite said bead, projecting laterally inwardly beyond the lower portion thereof.

2. Shoe welting as defined in claim 1 wherein said bead engages the side of said platform flange opposite said lower portion and below said upper portion.

3. A one-piece shoe welting comprising, a relatively thick strip of material defining an extension, a bead comprising a strip of relatively thin material provided with an integral rib extending from the inner face thereof between the edges of said strip and constituting a core for said head, said strip being wrapped laterally around said rib and integrally joined along one of its edges to the upper surface portion of said extension, said bead overlying said extension between the edges thereof and having its other edge integrally joined to the base portion of an upstanding platform flange, said flange having a relatively thin upper edge portion folded upon itself to lie against the side thereof opposite said bead, the base of said platform flange being provided with an integral flap overlying the adjacent edge of said extension and defining therewith an inseam flange.

(References on following page) References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Arnold Aug. 28, 1928 6 Lyon Oct. 9, 1928 Lyon Dec. 18, 1928 Lyon Mar. 26, 1929 Plummet June 11, 1935 White July 26, 1949 Gemme Apr. 22, 1952 

